The Joys of Motherhood
by KaterinaRedbird
Summary: Katherine adopts a young warlock after finding him abandoned in the woods. This is an Oneshot through the years of Katherine's and her son's life. The first time she met him, the time she decided to keep him, the time she decided to become a mother... Set after the events of 4x20


**A/N** ** _I love Kol Miakelson_** **sent me a prompt: Katherine adopts a young warlock and raised him so that she has someone who genuinely loves her**

 **I had so much fun writing this one! I love Katherine's character! It's the first time I've written a story revolving around her, I hope she isn't too OOC. :/**

 **I do need to apologize to I love Kol Miakelson, she sent me the prompt 4 months ago and I am just now getting to it. As everyone who reads my other two fanfictions knows, I suck at time managing my writing. Are people even still reading vampire diaries fanfiction? I hope so :D**

 **This is the first ever prompt I've written, I hope I did it justice. This is unbetaed so please excuse any mistakes.**

* * *

Katherine Pierce made her way out of New Orleans. It was foolish to have come here, to let that small glimmer of hope sink into her. As if Elijah would choose her over his abominable family. For a short moment she actually imagined herself and Elijah living somewhere far away from the dramatics of his family and even farther away from Mystic Falls. Maybe somewhere in France or Italy.

But that would never happen now. He would never see her as Katherine, as the woman she became when she finally fled from his ratchet family! She would never get to know the part of her again that Elijah originally fell in love with, the part she thought he still loved, Katerina Petrova. But Katerina had died a long time ago, she had had to die, between fleeing for her life, losing her family and unsuccessfully looking for her daughter, Katerina never stood a chance.

One might think she regretted the choices she made that led her to be dumped by the only guy she ever cared about in 500 years, but she didn't. She wouldn't be alive right now, if she would have chosen differently.

How could it be that after all these years and after all the things he did, Niklaus was the one who got his happy ending? It wasn't fair!

But life rarely was, no one knew that better than Katherine.

She was just crossing the border out of New Orleans, when she heard wolves howling. New Orleans was a powder keg about to explode and werewolves were banned from the city. She hoped the impending war that was sure to follow would count Klaus to its casualties. She hoped Elijah was smart enough to leave before it was too late for him, but that wasn't her problem anymore.

In the midst of wolves howling she suddenly picked up another sound, the screams of a baby. She wanted to keep going, she really did. It probably was scared of the wolves and the mother couldn't settle the poor thing down. There was really no reason to check it out, absolutely none.

So why did she do it anyway? Many years later she would say it was fate, at the time it was a gut feeling, a gut feeling she trusted, it had kept her alive many times after all.

She followed the sounds of the crying that led her deeper into the forest. She found the small bundle on top of a strong branch not far away from the trail in a small basket covered by two blue blankets. Its parents were nowhere to be seen.

Katherine listened carefully, but she couldn't hear anyone but the wolves. They must have been long gone. Katherine picked up the small basket to get a better look at the baby. It was a beautiful dark skinned baby boy with big chocolate eyes. She picked him out of the basket and cradled him in her arms trying to soothe him lest he alarm anyone nearby.

"Shh." Katherine whispered bouncing him. "Did they leave you all alone?" She asked, the baby just continued to cry, but it didn't sound as heartbreaking as before. Katherine observed him carefully, physically he was okay, maybe a little hungry. She guessed he about 6 months old. So someone kept the baby for 6 months and then decided to give it up and not only give it up, but abandon it in the middle of a forest surrounded by werewolves. Okay, there might be a possibility that they didn't know about the werewolves, but why leave a child behind after you already cared for it? And why not give it to an orphanage?

"What am I supposed to do with you, hmm?" Katherine murmured to the still crying baby. "I can't take you with me, I am not the motherly figure. You really have bad luck, from all the people that could have found you, it had to be me. You see, I am not a nice person." The baby answered with more crying. "Well I can't leave you here, not even I am that heartless." Even if some people would argue that point. Katherine sighed. She should probably leave him at the next orphanage or hospital she came across. She looked through the basket again to find a piece of paper or something that could give her more information, a name or anything! But nothing. "Well, then I just have to call you baby boy for now, don't I? Don't worry, your next parents are going to give you a name, but you won't remember any of this anyway, so why I am talking to you?" Katherine shook her head. "Honestly, you need to stop crying, dear. I already found you, there isn't much else I can do for you right now." The baby didn't listen, of course. So Katherine widened her eyes and tried to compel it, but it didn't work. Well, that would have been too easy. "I guess, you're hungry, aren't you? Let's find you something to eat." Katherine stopped and listened to herself. She was talking in a cutesy baby voice. She really needed to get rid of this baby, it was messing with her! She was not the kind of person who spoke in a high-pitched voice to a baby! "First something to eat and then a place for you to stay that sounds like a plan, doesn't it dear?" She put the baby back in the basket. As soon as she did so, the crying increased again. "I am not leaving you, but it's so much more comfortable in that basket, isn't it?" The grass around her feet began to smoke. "What the –" Katherine stepped back looking for any sign of intruder. There was no way the wet grass could suddenly have caught on fire. This was a witch's doing! Katherine's face dropped the happy attitude that she had put on for the baby. "I don't know who you are, but it's clear that you don't know who I am. So let's make something clear, I am the wrong person to mess with! You will not enjoy being on my bad side!" She called out loud, so that anyone near enough to set a fire could hear her. The fire didn't settle down and no one answered either.

She looked around again. She couldn't see or hear anyone, it was just her and the baby and the wolves howling in the distance. Katherine smiled one of her sardonic smiles. "Now it makes sense!" She laughed gleefully. "You're a warlock. A warlock in New Orleans, a powerful one at that. Did you know warlocks normally only start showing signs in puberty? You're not supposed to be able to do that. Magic is forbidden in New Orleans, witches and vampires are at war. Yes, you and I are at war." She pointed between herself and the basket. She sighed deeply. "That makes the whole ordeal more complicated. You must have frightened your parents. They probably get their powers from their ancestors, but you my dear, don't seem to have to rely on such nonsense. What am I going to do with you? You can't stay in New Orleans, but I can't leave you at the orphanage either if you're going to set it on fire." The flames got higher. "Oh, demanding." Katherine smiled and picked him up again. The flames died down. "We're going to get along just fine."

* * *

Katherine had been looking for months now for a family for the little boy she had been naming Aleksander for the time being.

No family had been a good enough fit. It had to be witches, no one else could handle a warlock child. Aleksander was about a year old, of course Katherine couldn't be sure, she tried finding the real parents to at least get his name and birthday, but New Orleans was a dangerous place for her and witches were too good at hiding stuff, she couldn't find the necessary information without the Mikaelson noticing her presence.

So she settled for travelling through the country, looking for witches who might take an abandoned child in. She made a mental list of how she imagined the people she would give Aleksander to had to be. Really she had the list since she was forced to give her daughter up. Of course the list never came into effect back then, her father took the opportunity to find a suiting home for her illegitimate child from her. Aleksander was her chance to make it up. She would find him a nice home, she wouldn't settle for less. She didn't want a witch involved in a coven, they were way too suspicious of outsiders and would never accept someone not from their bloodline. Also they seemed to be more hateful towards vampires. She still had to look out for herself! She couldn't just waltz into a witch's home and not expect them to kill her. She could handle a single witch, she's been around for 500 years, but she wasn't dumb, she wouldn't face an entire coven.

She had found a handful of people who had seemed promising. The first couple she put her faith in was a young couple in Oregon. They could barely be considered witches; they knew almost nothing of vampires. Katherine had seen their grimoire, it was the saddest grimoire she had ever seen in her 500 years, but she was desperate. She cared for Aleksander. It was hard not to with the amount of time they spent together. She played with him, bathed him, changed his diaper, fed him and soothed him when he woke up in the middle of the night. She barely recognized herself anymore. She had never looked this terrible in her life. She didn't have time to fix her hair or go shopping or do her make-up! She didn't remember the last time she went out! She was turning into her boring doppelgänger and she hated it!

She had always used compulsion in her daily life, but she never had to use it to this extent. Normally she could charm herself with the best of them and get what she wanted without using her powers. Turns out you needed a lot of things if you took care of a baby and apparently she lost her charm. She couldn't stay as long in places as she used to. She drew more attention and had too many enemies. Aleksander was so fragile; she wasn't willing to take as many risks as in the past. She was going soft and she couldn't have that. Aleksander was better off without her, she couldn't do this forever. This was no life for a child.

He was already more powerful than his prospective adoptive parents, but at least they were familiar with witchcrafts.

The parents were idiots; they invited Katherine into their home without any second guesses. They didn't wear any vervain either. Katherine was considering taking Aleksander then and there, but instead she enlightened the young couple of their short-comings. They smiled at her, not really taking her seriously. Katherine gritted her teeth, but stayed silent. If this couple turned out to be suitable parents, she could simply compel them to follow her rules. They would take care of Aleksander for a day and they would see where they would go from there.

Saying goodbye to Aleksander was painful, even if it was only for a day. It nearly broke her heart, a nice a reminder that she still had one. She wouldn't have thought that it would be so painful again, she had been through so much and she thought she built a resistance of some kind, apparently she hadn't. She needed booze, a lot of it.

She didn't need to suffer through the whole night, at 2 am - the time Aleksander usually woke up and Katherine spend half an hour trying to get him back to sleep - she got a hysterical call from the prospective parents. She had never ran that fast in her life.

The house was on fire. Everyone was gathered outside safely, she cradled the crying Aleksander to her chest. The fire stopped. The couple screamed at her and "her devil child". Katherine could only smirk.

"He misses me sometimes." She explained. Aleksander looked up at her with his big beautiful brown eyes and bubbled in his baby talk. Katherine couldn't help the grin forming on her lips.

Needless to say, this was not the family she was looking for, so they left Oregon.

This happened a few more times. Even more experienced witches were scared of Aleksander's power. Apparently it was a bad omen if a witch showed signs too early, it meant there was a high possibilities of that child being abused by dark magic. Another reason why Katherine hated witches. They were all superstitious know-it-alls.

Of course there were other reasons as well. Some witches actually heard of Katherine before and her reputation. They recognized her, which Katherine took as a compliment since she doubted many people would anymore. She didn't feel like herself anymore. The switch that turned your emotions off that so many baby vampires raved about and that with age got only more difficult, was definitely broken at this point. She doubted she could ever switch her emotions completely off again.

Those people didn't trust her any more than she trusted them, so that eliminated even more potential parents.

She wasn't only desperate anymore, she was hopeless. She got more and more attached to Aleksander and so did he to her. It was wrong and just the thought of leaving him made her feel sick, but it had to be done. She was no mother material. She couldn't force her lifestyle on to a child.

But she couldn't help but feel gleeful every time she got a call by the potential parents to pick Aleksander up, because he got homesick for her. It was an amazing feeling to be loved by someone you loved so dearly. This innocent little child trusted the evil vampire bitch over anyone else. Katherine had never been loved like that, maybe her family back when she was a human had, but that was too long ago for her to remember. Anyway, she hadn't been Katherine back then, she had been Katerina and those two were completely different people.

She considered going to Mystic Falls and giving Aleksander into the care of Bonnie Bennett or even Elena Gilbert. Maybe Aleksander would trust Elena, because she looked like Katherine. She'd like to think he would notice the difference, but wouldn't it be better for him to grow up with such a goody person instead of with Katherine? She couldn't bring herself to make that step though, she told herself it was because Elena Gilbert drew danger to herself more than anyone else Katherine had met in her many years, but really she didn't want to lose another thing yet again to little Miss Perfect.

She had heard of one more witch, a very old and powerful one that longed for family. Her last hope really. She lived in North Carolina, that's where Katherine and Aleksander were headed.

Freya seemed nice and suitable, but they all had in the beginning. Part of Katherine knew that she wanted this to fail so that she didn't have to say goodbye.

It became a routine for her to go straight to the bar after she let the potential parents babysit Aleksander. She would drink enough to get tipsy, but not enough to get drunk. She was expecting a call by 3 am the latest to pick Aleksander up again, because the house was on fire.

She got a call at 11 pm. She smirked, that was a new record.

When Katherine arrived at Freya's however, she was surprised to find the house still in perfect condition. No fire or even smoke could be seen. Freya greeted her at the door; Aleksander was sleeping in her arms. Dread settled in Katherine's stomach, everything was fine. Freya actually passed her test.

"Why did you call me?" Katherine gritted, because really she had no idea, everything seemed to be perfect.

"He woke up half an hour ago and started to set the house on fire." Freya arched an eyebrow at Katherine's cool attitude. "You don't seem surprised." Katherine shrugged.

"It happened once or twice before." Freya simple nodded, she had expected as much.

"I think we should talk." Katherine still being out of her element by the surprise to find everything in order followed Freya in the kitchen and sat down, while Freya began making tea. "He is a special boy."

"He is." Katherine agreed.

"Where did you find him?" Katherine sighed and told her the story.

"No sign of his bloodline? He must be part of at least two separate powerful witch families. He shouldn't be able to access his power yet." Katherine just shrugged and told Freya how she tried to find out more, but was unsuccessful.

"So why aren't you keeping him?"

"I am a vampire, some call me one of the most ruthless vampires alive. I am not the kind of person that should be allowed to raise a child, least of all a powerful warlock child."

"Why? You have been taking care of him so far, right? And he hasn't set you on fire yet? I think there a lot of people out there who think they shouldn't be mothers, but grow into their responsibilities."

"I am not a teenager that accidently got pregnant." Katherine snapped. At least she wasn't anymore.

"No, you could have abandoned him, but you didn't. So I guess, you don't really want to abandon him, you are just looking for someone to take over for you, someone more suitable than you, but you're not going to find one. He trusts you. You can handle him. I don't think you are going to find a witch able to suppress his power, I had trouble doing it and I am the most powerful witch you'll ever meet."

"So you're telling me I don't have a choice?" Katherine smiled.

"I don't think you do. But I think you need help, his powers will most likely grow and he might not be able to control it."

"So what am I supposed to do?" Katherine realized how weak she sounded, but she didn't care. She was out of her depth.

"I'd change my name if I were you. If you're as hated as you claim, people will recognize you. A name change might help and for Aleksander I have just the right thing." She got up and arrived a minute later with a blue stone on a necklace.

"Lapis Lazuli?" Katherine spat in disgust. "Are you suggesting I turn this little baby into a vampire?"

"This stone has more meaning than just as a daylight ring." Freya rolled her eyes. "It will settle Aleksander mentally and hopefully stop the outburst of accidental magic. I also put a protection spell on it." She put it over Aleksander's head. The necklace looked huge on the small child.

"Thank you." Katherine whispered and she really meant it. Freya waved her off.

"So have you thought about a new name?"

Katherine smiled. "Katerina Petrova." It was ironic really. Katerina had always been the name that was used simultaneous with doppelgänger, it was the name that had cost her her family and threatened her life so many times, so she became Katherine, but in the many years she had been Katherine she had cumulated more enemies than Katerina ever had. Funnily enough, the Mikaelsons were the last people besides the inhabitants of Mystic Falls to know her real name, and they were the least of her problems, Klaus had his own issues to deal with, now Katerina could be her safe haven again, maybe she always was supposed to end back here.

"Well then, congratulations on adopting a child, Katerina Petrova."

Aleksander would never know how long Katerina struggled with the idea of keeping him, but they did celebrate this day from there on out. Katerina decided to put Aleksander's birthday on the day that she finally did decide.

* * *

While Katerina had taken care of Aleksander since the moment she laid eyes on him, the moment she officially decided to keep him, something changed. She completely changed her way of looking for new places to stay in. In the past she preferred places where missing people wouldn't attract unnecessary attention and she could compel anyone she needed to without people coming up and asking uncomfortable questions. These areas were often isolated, sketchy or with a high percentage of supernatural beings. Now she looked for places in a nice neighborhood with a garden and a playground with no supernatural beings to worry about. She even kept the compulsions to a minimum. Never in her life had she ever wanted to be a good role model, but she thought it was only fair that she stopped to rely on those things when she planned on raising Aleksander to use his magic powers as little as possible and not use it for his own advantage.

The house she bought - normally designed to the nines, very minimalistic and chic - was now littered with baby toys, clothes and anything a baby might ever desire.

She compelled someone to come once a week and clean the house, because really she had been dependent on compulsion for over 500 years, it was like an addiction, and she couldn't stop it immediately. Also she was a vampire single mother with a witch child, she really couldn't do everything by herself and Aleksander was too young to realize much of what was going on anyway.

Currently her little boy was sitting on the ground and playing with one of his many teddy bears. She sat down next to him and gave all of his teddy bears funny voices so that Aleksander was all smiles and giggles.

While she was playing with his teddies, Aleksander was transfixed by her daylight bracelet. Katerina laughed.

"No, Kat needs this one. I'll be in big trouble without it and you're not old enough to make me a new one." Aleksander giggled again and put his own lapis lazuli stone in his mouth. Katerina sighed. She was just glad that the stone was too big for him to swallow. She would take the necklace off of him, but his magic went haywire the last time she tried.

The bell rang; Katerina rolled her eyes but got up. It was probably the lady next door again, trying to be nice and inviting them to her barbeque party. Katerina and Aleksander had been to one just last week. They were incredible dull people, next to which Elena looked interesting, but they were gushing over Aleksander, which made them bearable, but Katerina didn't think she could handle another one of those dull evenings. She had been forced to go to the hospital after that, she had needed something stronger than red wine. As she was walking to the door, Aleksander began whining and pointing at her hand where she was still holding one of his teddies.

"Kat is just going to the door; I'll be back in a minute."

"KAT!" Aleksander screeched and pointed to his teddy again. Katerina stopped in her step and turned to her little boy.  
"Did you just say your first word?" She asked still in disbelieve, ignored the doorbell and whooshed to Aleksander to pick him up. He wasn't very interested in her cuddles and more focused on having his favorite teddy back.

"Say it again, say Kat again." Katerina urged, but Aleksander wasn't listening. She thought of something else, "You know, everyone else is calling me your mother. I never thought I'd be the Mother type, but I am basically your mom, in every concept but blood. Maybe we should start calling me your mother too, don't you think?" Aleksander answered in baby talk. "Well then, can you say: Momma?" Aleksander babbled something incomprehensible. "Well, we're going to practice that a bit more, won't we?" She asked and kissed her son.

That was the moment Katerina decided that she was a mother and Aleksander her son. He would never know that his first word wasn't mom, but Kat. He would never know how long it took Katerina to accept her role as mother instead of just a caregiver for him, she always was his mother, the person who would do everything for him.

* * *

Aleksander and Katerina lived happily. They moved a lot, but Aleksander was not old enough to go to school yet, so there weren't any tears about leaving friends behind yet. She dreaded the day that was going to become a problem. The necklace Freya gave them worked for the most part, there were still a few fires whenever he got into a big temper tantrum, but those were rare and nowhere near as dangerous as they used to be.

They were about to move again, because Katerina had caught wind of someone aligned with the Mikaelsons and Katerina was packing boxes. Aleksander was making this a whole lot more difficult, every time she closed a box, he was opening it again. She'd consider compelling him, but she put vervain in everything he ate.

"Aleksander, it's dark outside, you should be getting ready for bed." Aleksander looked disappointed but didn't argue. It was still an hour until his usual bed time, but he didn't know that. He was still so young that she could use the "It's dark outside" argument whenever she wanted, even when it was winter and dark outside since 4pm, plus they had to get up early tomorrow anyway. Katerina liked to flee as soon as possible; she wasn't much of a risk taker anymore.

She finished packing the kitchen utensils, then she went upstairs to help Aleksander and tuck him in. She didn't always hire a help. There were too many supernatural things going on in their house for some human to be in there on a regular basis. Compulsion was kept to a minimum, she didn't like to do it in front of Aleksander, it was only fair, since he wasn't allowed to use magic either.

"Tell me the story again!" Aleksander demanded. Katerina smiled.

"Please." She reminded him.

"Please." Aleksander repeated and huddled himself deeper into the covers.

"A very long time ago there was a young princess. She lived in a wonderful castle with a lot of rich and powerful people far away from her home. She enjoyed it a lot, people catered to her every wish and she fell in love with a prince. He promised her the world, but his brother was an evil monster who wanted to use the princess to lift a spell cast upon him many lifetimes ago, but to do so he had to kill the princess. The prince wanted to help his brother, but also didn't want to lose his princess, so he looked for a loophole, a way for him to get both. The princess was touched at his effort when she learned about his plan but most of all she was scared and hurt that he would consider putting her life on the line. She realized no one was going to save her, so she saved herself. She tricked the brothers and fled from them far away, so far they would never find her. And they never did, even though they looked, but she was cleverer than both of them. However, she paid a price for her bravery. She spent many years lonely and hated. She didn't trust anyone and in turn no one trusted her. She became as feared as the monsters she fled from.

"All of that changed of course when she found a little boy in the middle of the forest, just as lonely as herself and she stopped running so both of them didn't have to be lonely anymore." Katerina smiled down at her little boy and kissed him goodnight.

"I love you, mommy." He whispered. Katerina closed her eyes and let the warm feeling wash over her. She couldn't believe how much her life had changed for the better thanks to her little boy.

"I love you too." She replied, more than he would ever know. She kissed him once more on the forehead and then got up, switched the light off and closed the door behind her, to get back to packing boxes.

She was almost done when she heard the distinct tapping of feet on the floor. It didn't sound like Aleksander's feet, she could recognize them anywhere. No these were stranger's feet. Katerina's already dead heart missed a beat. She never moved that fast in her life to kick an intruder's butt.

"This was extremely foolish of you." Katerina said while she had her foot on the intruder's neck, her heel drawing blood, but not enough for the intruder to be incapable of answering. She was incredible grateful that she decided to wear heels today. She wasn't wearing them as often as she used to bevor she found Aleksander. It took her a few years to find a balance between her old life and her role as a mother. She had been a mess the first year, now she looked as impeccable as always, but she switched up the heels once in a while for sneakers, because Aleksander liked to take hold of her leg and force her to carry him around this way. He hated her heels for that.

She watched the man more carefully. He had blond short hair, red eyes, veins all across his face, fangs visible fletched, full on vampire face. Physically he looked like he was in his early thirties. She was sure she hadn't seen him directly, but it had to be the Mikaelson ally she heard about. The man grunted. Katerina rolled her eyes. "This is going to be extremely quick. You are going to tell me who you are, who send you and what you want."

"No one send me." The man gritted. He wasn't lying. Katerina knew when someone was lying. She sighed. So it wasn't a Mikaelson ally, but someone on a personal agenda. He probably wasn't even a 100 yet.

"Then what are you doing here?" She questioned bored, putting more pressure on the man's neck.

"You're Katherine Pierce." He spat. "There is a high prize on your head." A vampire headhunter? That was new.

"Do your homework!" She chided. "My head isn't worth as much as it used to and I don't go by Katherine anymore. This was an incredible unsuccessful and deadly mission for you. Tell me, how did you find me?"

"Go to hell!" The man spat and continued to struggle under her feet with no avail, Katerina was a lot stronger than he.

"Oh, I will one day, but not today. But be sure to greet me, when we meet there. You see, I don't give second chances!"

"Who said I was alone?" The man smiled dangerously. Aleksander. Katerina forgot to breathe for only a second and her eyes darted to his room. It was only a split second, but it was enough. She had made a fatal mistake. Stupid! Of course there was only one intruder! She had only heard one set of feet and Aleksander's soft breathing in the next room. It was too late now. The intruder used the second her body went into panic mode to kick her foot away, she stumbled and fell face flat on the floor. The second it took her to get up, he was already opening the door to Aleksander's room. Pure dread settled in the pit of her stomach when she saw the man standing next to Aleksander's bed.

"Not a step closer." He warned and Katerina stopped, not even daring to breathe lest she set him off. She slowly put her hands in the air. "I won't. What do you want from me?" She couldn't hide her desperation. He laughed darkly.

"Your head." He looked down at Aleksander. "Cute son you have here, bad luck for him to have a vampire bitch as a mother. I'll be doing him a favor!"

"You're a vampire who hates vampires. You would be surprised how often that happens. I can help you." She lied.

"I was a witch before some scum turned me into a vampire and killed my entire family!" He screamed. Aleksander turned around, but didn't wake up.

"I know how you feel! I lost my family centuries before you were even born! I lost everything!"

"So did I!" The man screamed again, waking Aleksander in the process. He jumped from the sudden noise and widened his eyes in terror. The man pushed him back down to the bed and noticed Aleksander's necklace.

"A witch?" He seemed to surprise. "Already showing signs? At this age!" He seemed repelled. "Devil's child with a vampire mother!" He put his fingers around Aleksander's neck. Katerina screamed like she never screamed before. Humans were so fragile and her Aleksander more than others, he was so innocent. She couldn't watch him die, but there was nothing she could do right now, but stall and hope for the slightest of misstep on his part. She only needed time to kick the man across the room, grab Aleksander and then run like she never did before.

"Don't hurt him!" Katerina begged, near tears now. She realized with horror that she would be willing to do anything to protect that boy, including giving up her own life. "Please!" Katerina added desperately. Aleksander looked at her with his big brown innocent eyes. He was scared. She could see it in his face and by the beating of his heart that more than doubled right now. He was panicking.

The man looked between the two other people in the room, a sinister smile forming on his lips. He kicked the bedframe so that one leg broke off. Aleksander yelped as he was crashing to the ground, the intruder's hands still around his neck.

The intruder shoved the broken wooden leg in her direction. "Take it and kill yourself with it. I am a good guy after all, I don't want to kill this child either, but if I have to to stop him from being consumed by dark magic, I will." Katerina realized with shock what he was getting at. Traumatized witches sometimes lost their powers. Witnessing his own mother's suicide might be enough to bury his magic. Katerina gulped and moved to pick up the makeshift stake. There was no doubt in her mind that she'll do it to save Aleksander's life, no matter the cost. She had contingency plans of course. There was a piece of paper explaining everything that would be delivered to Elijah's doorsteps as soon as she died. Beside everything that happened, she trusted him to not leave an innocent child alone. He could erase any traumatic memory from Aleksander's mind, but she rather he didn't have to. She could throw the stake and aim it at the intruder, but the chance that he'd catch it and kill Aleksander on the spot were too high. The only heartbeat in the room increased further. She put the stake to her heart and pulled it back to get enough leverage.

A sudden surge of power pushed both vampires against the wall. The intruder landed with a broken neck, while Katerina was left with a few broken bones that would heal themselves soon. The stake she had held in her hands was now nothing more than a bunch of wood rasps. She looked at Aleksander. He was breathing heavily, blood was coming out of his nose and the amulet around his neck was glowing dangerously. He smiled at her and then fainted. She didn't let herself feel happy that he had survived or feel scared that not even the amulet managed to stop the uncontrolled outburst of magic that was clearly too much for his little body, she just scooped the boy up in her arms and ran.

She came back of course. A broken neck didn't kill the man, but the multiple stakes in his chest certainly did the job.

* * *

A few years ago, Katerina would have laughed in your face if you said that she would return to Mystic Falls. Yet, here she was. Not only that, she was sucking up to no other than Caroline Forbes, while Aleksander was playing outside on the playground with the other kids from the Salvatore Boarding School for the Young & Gifted.

"You have some nerve coming here to ask me for a favor!" Caroline gritted. They had walked a bit further into the woods, so that they both could still have an eye on their kids, but they wouldn't necessarily realize if this meeting took a bad turn.

"I wouldn't exactly call it a favor, I am willing to pay thrice the usual acceptance fee."

"I don't care about your money!" Caroline screeched.

"So it's true what I heard? Klaus really still has the hots for you?" Katerina couldn't help but tease.

"That's no of your damn business! Aren't you afraid what Klaus will do, when he finds you here living peacefully?" Caroline challenged, her skepticism over Katherine living a peaceful life clear in her voice.

"Klaus isn't the only enemy I made over the years. Believe it or not he isn't my biggest problem."

"So who is?"

"I don't need your help defending my son from my enemies!" Katerina changed the topics. "I more than capable! I need your help teaching my son how to handle his powers, so that he won't be a danger to himself!" Caroline didn't answer immediately. She watched Katerina closely, making her deductions.

"Where did you pick him up anyway? If I go online, will I find a police announcement looking for a boy with his description?" Katerina rolled her eyes.

"He is my son like the twins are your daughters! I am the only one who ever took care of him, I found him in the woods near New Orleans. I never found out which coven abandoned him."

"So _you_ took care of an infant?"

"Yes, Caroline." Katerina answered exasperated.

"I am sorry, I've only ever seen you kill people, I wasn't aware that you were also capable of nurturing."

"You should be thanking me! I killed you and look how much better your life turned out!" Caroline scoffed.

"It turned out great, in spite of you not because of you!"

"I don't really care. Is Aleksander allowed in your school or not?" Caroline turned to watch the playground. Aleksander was on the swing, laughing happily.

"Of course we will. We made this school for children like him, I am not going to turn an innocent child away, because its mother is a murderous lunatic." Katerina let her remark slide. "But if you threaten or kill anyone here in Mystic Falls, I will personally run you out of this town! "

"I won't hurt anyone in your pathetic town, I promise." Katerina rolled her eyes, on second thoughts she added. "I need you to promise me in return that no one of your little gang will bring up my past around Aleksander. He doesn't need to know all the things I did to ensure my survival yet."

"Of course not." Caroline nodded. "I can't believe I am saying this, but on behalf of all parents, I'd like to welcome you to the Salvatore Boarding School for the Young & Gifted community." They both shook hands and smiled.

It would be an interesting 12 years.

* * *

"Mom, do we really have to go?" Aleksander complained, while Katerina tried to convince him to wear the itchy shirt that looked best on him.

"You know we do. Caroline will kill me, if we don't attend the birthday party!"

"I don't even like Lizzie and Josie! They are annoying and talk too much!" Katerina chuckled, just like their mother. Even if she had to admit that Caroline and her were getting along fine. Dare she say it, they were actually becoming friends. Katerina was an exceptional active mother at the school. With no other means of entertainment and no job to speak off, or the desire to get one, she found comfort in being a simple housewife for once. In her very modest opinion, she was the best baker out of all of the parents. Admittedly, at the last bake sale she might have compelled a few people to buy her cake instead of Suzanne Kenner's. She was the mother of little Alice, an incredible spoilt little witch, with which Aleksander unfortunately got along fine with, but Katerina couldn't stand just as her mother. Katerina had a run in with one of her ancestor almost a century ago, but witches could hold a grudge over generations. It was incredible annoying and someone needed to show that witch that she couldn't always be the center of attention. No one but a werewolf father had any suspicion, but he kept his mouth shut, he was just as annoyed of Suzanne.

"It's going to be fun. You'll congratulate the twins, we'll give them their presents and you can go off and play with your friends. You know Caroline, she'll probably went very overboard with the whole celebration. You're going to have a blast." Aleksander still didn't seem convinced, but took the shirt without further complaining.

When they arrived at Caroline's home, Katerina quickly realized how right she had been. They was a bouncy castle, a pool, a craft station and a bon fire, which flickered on and off repeatedly. That tended to happen with a bunch of witch prodigies. Aleksander eyes widened. Katerina smiled. "Go have fun, but find Lizzie and Josie first and tell them Happy Birthday. I'll be at the grown up table." She didn't even get to finish her sentence, he already dashed off. She sighed and went over to a waving Caroline, after she dropped the twins' presents on their designated table.

The parents were drinking and having fun alongside their children. Katerina had to give Caroline credit, she knew how to throw a party. Suzanne turned to her, "So Caroline, I heard the school is getting a new student soon."

Caroline nodded. "Yes, that's right. I invited her today, she should be here any minute."

"What's her story?" Suzanne prompted further.

"She is a witch, but with werewolf and vampire ancestors."

"You invited Klaus' daughter?" Katerina interrupted. Caroline nodded.

"Of course I did. He is a benefactor of the school."

"And you want to get into his pants." Katerina added. All the other parents snickered. Caroline didn't take the bait.

"I let you in. His daughter is an innocent, just like Aleksander is."

"You need to stop bringing up my past. I think I proved myself by now." Caroline actually looked sorry.

"You did." Caroline confirmed. "Speaking of the devil, here they are."

Everyone turned to look at the newcomers, but it wasn't Klaus who they were seeing. It was that werewolf girl- Hayley?- and an original in a bespoken suit Katerina knew just too well, Elijah. Katerina followed Caroline to greet the new people.

When Elijah caught her sight, you could see his surprise written all over his face.

"Katherine?" He asked perplexed.

"It's Katerina now actually." She corrected him. Caroline looked between the two of them and was nice enough to lead Hayley and her little girl back to the other people.

"What are you doing at a children's birthday party?"

"I could ask you the same thing. As far as I know you don't have any children or have you adopted Klaus' daughter? I'd have thought he'd be here to woo Caroline."

"My brother has other responsibilities today. Are you implying you have a child?" Elijah asked surprised. She couldn't help but smile.

"I am. You see the little boy that is showing off his skills right now? That's mine." She explained proudly.

"How?" He couldn't quite hide his surprise. Katerina knew him too well for that. She just smiled.

"Let's just say, you turning me down, was the best thing that ever happened to me." He eyed her carefully and then turned around to watch Aleksander with her.

"Who would have thought. Katerina Petrova experiencing the joys of motherhood." They were quiet for a second. Katerina could feel the other parents watching them. Elijah turned to her again. "I am sorry for how I treated you the last time we saw each other. But I must admit that I am glad that you found yourself again. Katerina was a too remarkable woman to be dead forever."

"I agree." Katerina answered cheekily. She watched Aleksander with pride. "Turns out I just needed to find the right guy in my life that made me want to be a better person and would always believe in me."

* * *

 **A/N I love Katherine's and Elijah's relationship! I hope you had as much fun reading it as I had writing it! Please leave a review, I'd love to read your thoughts. If you have any other prompts for oneshots, you'd like for me to write, leave me a review or pm, but be warned, I take forever to finish. :/ I am trying to work on that.**


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